Theory and Practice in Aristotle's Natural Science

What is it about?

Aristotle argued that in theory one could acquire knowledge of the natural world. But he did not simply provide a theoretical account of how to do this; he put his theories into practice. This volume shows how Aristotle’s natural science and philosophical theories shed light on one another. The contributors engage with Aristotle’s biological and non-biological scientific works and with a wide variety of his theoretical works, including Physics, Generation and Corruption, On the Soul, and Posterior Analytics. The chapters focus on a number of themes, including the sort of explanation provided by matter; the relationship between matter, teleology, and necessity; cosmic teleology; how an organism’s soul and faculties relate to its end; how to define things such as sleep, void, and soul; and the proper way to make scientific judgments. The resulting volume offers a rich and integrated view of Aristotle’s science and shows how it fits with his larger philosophical theories.

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